“To get to this point is a blessing in itself,” Thomas said. “It was nerve wracking out there today, but we had a good time and had fun. It was our last race of the season together. It was nice to score at the national championships, and really we just took it as it came.”

The quartet crossed the line in a time of 44.19. It marked the first times since 2001 that the Crimson Tide made it to the national finals in the 4x100 and Alabama’s best finish since 1993 when the Tide was second.

As a team, the Crimson Tide men finished 15th with 14 points while home-standing Oregon won the title with 88 points. On the women’s side of the slate, Alabama was 18th with 13 points while Texas A&M took home the championship with 75 points. It was the men’s second consecutive top-15 finish, marking the first time since 2001 and 2002 that the Tide has posted back-to-back top-15 national finishes. It was the Tide women’s best finish since 2006, when Alabama was 17th.

On the men’s side of the meet, in his second consecutive NCAA Championship appearance, sophomore Imani Brown finished 20th in the triple jump with a leap of 51 feet and .75 inches (15.56 meters) on Saturday. A dropped baton cost the men’s 4x100-meter relay of senior Alex Sanders, sophomore Dwight Davis, senior Akeem Haynes and senior Diondre Batson a chance at the national title.

An event-by-event breakdown of Alabama's performances Saturday:

Women's 4x100-meter relay: Alabama's quartet of freshman Quanesha Burks, junior Remona Burchell, junior Dominique Kimpel, and senior Sarah Thomasfinished sixth in the women's 4x100-meter relay final with a time of 44.19. Texas A&M won the event with a time of 42.80, the best by a collegiate team this season.

Men's Triple Jump: Sophomore Imani Brownimproved on each of his three attempts in the men's triple jump, but his final mark of 15.56 meters (51 feet, ¾ inch) was not enough to advance him to the event finals. Brown jumped 14.90 meters (48 feet, 10.75 inches) on his first attempt and 15.14 meters (49 feet, 8.25 inches) on his second attempt.

Men's 4x100-meter relay: Alabama's team of senior Alex Sanders, sophomore Dwight Davis, senior Akeem Haynes and senior Diondre Batsondid not finish the men's 4x100-meter relay after Davis and Haynes were unable to connect on the second baton exchange. Florida won with a time of 38.73.

NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships Day 4Saturday, June 14, 2014University of Alabama